This invention relates to a dispenser for wipes which features a pop-up cover and pop-up wipes capability.
One of the limitations of prior art wipe dispensers is that a single dispenser requires several different materials to construct the dispenser. For instance, the body of the dispenser may be made of one material, the lid of a second different material, and the hinge connecting the dispenser body to the lid of yet a third material. This adds complexity to the dispenser manufacturing process.
Furthermore, the hinge is commonly comprised of some type of mechanical device such as a spring, a strap, or other like elastic material. Such devices are disclosed in EP 0952088 published on Oct. 27, 1999 and in U.S. Pat. No. 5,699,912 issued to Ishikawa et al. on Dec. 23, 1997. The drawback of these types of mechanical hinging devices is that they are subject to mechanical failure. Additionally, these types of mechanical hinging devices add further complexity to the dispenser manufacturing.
Another common limitation of prior art wipes dispensers is that the wet wipe contained within the dispenser is not adequately protected from drying out when the lid is closed.
The present invention overcomes these limitations. The dispenser comprises only two partsxe2x80x94a body for containing the wipes and a lid that covers the wipes dispensing aperture. There are no mechanical parts. A living hinge, which is part of the lid construction, is used for the purpose of opening and shutting the lid. Hence, the dispenser manufacturing process is greatly simplified. Additionally, the dispenser includes a sealing means for preventing evaporation of liquid from the wipes when the lid is in the closed position. Yet further, the lid is designed with a pop-up cover allowing for easy one-handed wipes dispensing without requiring the user to hold the cover in an open position while dispensing a wipe.
The present invention relates to a dispenser for dispensing wipes. The dispenser comprises a lid which is attached to a body. The lid is constructed of a single unitary piece of material. The lid includes a dispensing aperture and a cover. The cover includes an exterior seal, an inner seal, a perimeter seal comprising a backside perimeter seal, and a locking mechanism. The lid also includes a hinge which connects the cover to the lid. The hinge includes a step, a hinge step contacting member, and a deflection member. The lid also includes an inner ring adjacent to the dispensing aperture. A middle ring is adjacent to the inner ring. An outer ring is adjacent to the middle ring. A lower lid is adjacent to the outer ring. The lower lid includes a depression member. The hinge step contacting member contacts the step creating a first interference resulting in the outward deflection of the deflection member and creating a first storage energy. The backside perimeter seal of the cover contacts the wall formed by the middle ring and the outer ring thereby creating a second interference resulting in additional storage energy. The exterior seal contacts the wall formed by the outer ring and the lid surface. The latch catch engages the locking mechanism.
The dispenser may have an inner ring which includes an outer tapered surface leading to the middle ring. The dispenser may also have an inner seal with a tapered surface. The dispenser may optionally include support ribs.